Climate change is helping invasive species take root in Washington
Skye Pelliccia knows an invasive plant when she sees one.
“[They] could be [in] a development area, roadsides, somewhere that is being physically developed, like urban areas that just have soil availability,” she said.
And Pelliccia knows these plants – more commonly known as weeds – aren’t harmless. Pelliccia is an education specialist for the King County Noxious Weed Control Board. Part of her job is to identify and remove invasive plants out in the field.
But she and others at the board have noticed a worrying trend that is making their work more challenging: Climate change is making it harder for native plants to thrive in their natural environment, giving invasive plants the opportunity to fill the niches native plants leave behind.
https://www.cascadepbs.org/environment/2025/01/climate-change-helping-invasive-species-take-root-washington